Morning Self-Study

"So heavy."

Sirius finally put on his custom tracksuit.

There was no denying it—a year of wolfing down food on Desert Island had left his physique far beyond that of an average six-year-old. Even carrying fifty kilograms, he only felt a bit of weight.

It wasn't anywhere near too much for him.

Right, after all, his body could leap several meters in a single bound. Fifty kilos was still well within his limits.

But if he had to add five laps around Onigashima on top of that, the situation would be completely different.

He might actually die.

Maria and Jack both shot Sirius pitying looks.

But there was one oblivious soul.

"Uncle King! I want the same outfit as Sirius!" Yamato declared loudly.

"I can share with you!" Sirius quickly offered.

"Less talk, brat!"

King glared at Sirius, then turned to Yamato. "If you want one, go find Queen yourself. Now, everyone—five laps around Onigashima, full speed."

"Yeah!"

Yamato shouted back, then shot off In a flash. "Sirius, hurry up!"

Jack and Black Maria quickly followed, with Maria glancing back to give Sirius a smile. "Hang in there, Sirius."

He had no choice but to grit his teeth and push through, right?

Sirius glanced at King, who stood watchfully to the side.

If he stalled any longer, he'd get a Wind Blade up the rear, wouldn't he?

Finally, Sirius started moving, sprinting forward.

The moment he took off, he realized running with weights was a completely different experience from before. Every arm swing, every stride consumed far more energy than usual.

That wasn't even the main issue. The real problem was that his center of gravity had shifted entirely. Adjusting his running rhythm became a struggle, and that was what drained him the most.

"This is no joke!"

Sirius clenched his teeth and pushed himself to run.

He had no choice but to keep going. King was hovering in the sky behind him, and the moment he slowed down, a Wind Blade would come whistling down as a warning.

Last time, Sirius only started feeling tired after finishing one lap, and he was completely spent after three.

But this time, it happened much faster. Before he'd even made it through most of the first lap, Sirius was already gasping for air, his steps growing sloppy, sweat the size of beans rolling down his forehead.

Every swing of his arms, every stride, felt like an all-out effort. His muscles screamed, his lungs roared, and only his mind went blank.

It was too exhausting. Way too exhausting.

Eventually, even the concept of exhaustion faded, replaced by nothing but numbness.

"Is Sirius okay?"

Black Maria, running ahead, glanced back with concern. She saw Sirius starting to wobble and stumble.

"He'll be fine! He's Sirius!"

Yamato, leading the pack, shouted without looking back.

Jack wanted to say something too, but before he could, a Wind Blade came down from the sky.

"What's with the chatter? If you've got breath to talk, use it to speed up!"

The three of them accelerated again.

Sirius truly couldn't go any faster. Just as the first lap was about to end, his vision went dark, and he collapsed face-first onto the ground.

It was beyond his will to fight it—his stamina had hit its limit.

"Sirius?"

Black Maria and Jack noticed him fall. Both tensed up, wanting to turn back.

"Keep running!"

But King suddenly dropped from the sky, turning back to glare coldly at the two, forcing them to abandon the thought.

Then, King looked down at Sirius sprawled on the ground, pulled a box from behind his back, and tossed it in front of him.

Sirius's nose twitched.

What a delicious smell.

"You have ten seconds," King said.

He didn't even need ten. Sirius's head transformed into a wolf's, his mouth gaped open, and he swallowed the box—half his size—in one gulp.

Gulp.

Without even chewing, Sirius downed it all.

The moment the food went down, Sirius opened his eyes again.

Resurrected!

"Get up now that you're recovered!"

King's voice was calm. "Continue."

Sirius could only scramble to his feet.

At that moment, he heard King say, "Don't worry, kid. There's plenty of food."

Are you a demon?

Sirius couldn't help but shoot King a look.

"What are you standing around for! I never said you could stop! Continue!" King growled lowly.

Sirius quickly started moving his feet again.

The three ahead also noticed Sirius getting back up. Black Maria said cheerfully, "What an amazing ability! Sirius is back again!"

"That's why Brother King gives Sirius special treatment!" Jack was also pleased. "His ability lets him handle extremely intense training!"

"I told you, Sirius would be fine!" Yamato laughed heartily, then began to speed up.

Black Maria and Jack followed suit.

Sirius really wanted to curse.

Speed up again?

With King watching like a hawk behind him, Sirius had no choice but to match the pace.

Running faster, Sirius tired out quicker this time, collapsing before finishing the second lap.

But King promptly delivered food, letting Sirius resurrect again.

This time, Sirius finally found some rhythm. He ran a bit over a lap, finishing the third lap and then a small half-lap before falling.

Then came the third resurrection.

"Hahaha!! Are you done already, Jack! Maria!"

Sirius laughed as he strode forward, overtaking Jack and Maria who had been leading him.

Those two were nearly spent after the fifth lap too.

"This—this—it's practically cheating—" Maria gasped, unable to keep up.

But Jack had better stamina. Gritting his teeth, he started accelerating to chase Sirius.

However, Sirius only got cocky at the start of the fifth lap.

By the second half, his stamina was flagging again, and he nearly got overtaken by Jack. Even going all out, he only managed to stay neck and neck.

Finally, the five laps were done. Sirius collapsed again.

"Finally, breakfast."

Sirius panted, relieved to rest at last.

Morning training before breakfast had already exhausted him three times. Now it was four. This life was inhuman.

Sure, he could recover, but the fatigue before collapsing—it was downright deadly!

"Breakfast?"

Just then, King descended from the sky and tossed a box in front of Sirius. His voice was calm. "Haven't you been eating all along?"

"..."

Sirius snapped his head up.

"What are you waiting for, kid?"

King said, "Morning training is over, but your personal early class—that's just beginning."

You mother—

Sirius really wanted to blast a flame right in King's face.

"Sirius—"

Yamato looked at him in surprise.

Sirius turned to her, giving her an encouraging look.

Yeah, Yamato, help me curse him out! It's breakfast time for cute kids!

Then Yamato's face lit up with a bright smile. "Uncle King is so good to you! This way, Sirius can get stronger fast!"

She patted her little belly. "I want to join too, but I'm so hungry right now."

"Anyway," she gave Sirius a thumbs-up, "Go for it, Sirius!"

Jack also gave him a thumbs-up. "Keep it up, Sirius! Don't let down Brother King and Boss Kaido's expectations! You're going to be the Third Calamity!"

You two!

Sirius's eyelid twitched.

"I'm so hungry. Let's go eat."

Yamato said, patting her stomach.

"Yeah, yeah!"

Jack and Black Maria agreed, and the three of them went to eat together.

As they left, Yamato and Jack each turned back to say "good luck" to Sirius once more.

Only Black Maria gave Sirius a look that said she couldn't help him.

"Kid, how long are you going to slack off! Keep going!" King's voice was cold.

Sirius's heart was cold too.

He had finally experienced what King meant earlier about maximizing the use of his abilities.

But for now, the only thing to do was to face it head-on!

After all, even though it was a bit tiring, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing overall.

Sirius opened his mouth wide and swallowed the food in front of him, box and all.

Once his stamina recovered, he leaped up and, facing the rising sun, began to run again.

Running under the morning sun—that was Sirius's youthful, reckless youth.